Asian markets go bullish
on US and Chinese stimulus plans
DPA
Tokyo,
Dec 8 (DPA) Asian stock markets surged Monday on renewed optimism
related to large-scale economic stimulus plans by the US and
China.
Japan's
benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average closed up 411.54 points,
or 5.2 percent, to 8,329.05, the biggest gain in almost two
weeks, carrying over Friday's positive sentiment on Wall Street.
Investors
speculated that US demand was to rebound soon, after president-elect
Barack Obama pledged the biggest public works programme in
more than 50 years.
The
broader Topix index of all first-section issues rose 26.06
points, or 3.32 percent, to 812.08.
In
Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng index surged 8.66 percent
to its highest level in seven weeks.
Turnover
topped 63.87 billion Hong Kong dollars ($8.19 billion), following
Friday's turnover of 37.3 billion Hong Kong dollars.
Analysts
said market sentiment was driven by investor optimism that
China would announce further measures to boost domestic consumption
and that a US plan to bailout car giants would succeed.
China
announced a 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) infrastructure
spending package on Nov 9 that was intended to increase domestic
demand.
US
president-elect Barack Obama signalled plans last weekend
for the largest investment in public works since the development
of the interstate highway system in the 1960s and 1970s.
Mainland
China's stockmarkets surged 3.57 percent.
The
benchmark Shanghai Composite Index was up 72.11 points, or
3.57 percent, to 2,090.77. The smaller Shenzhen index gained
249.48 points, or 3.43 percent, to 7,528.63.
Taiwan's
stocks went up 4.57 percent, bolstered by Wall Street's strong
rally Friday, dealers said.
The
main Taiex index opened with a bang, tracking strong gains
in Wall Street, as semiconductor and financial shares rose
sharply. The upward trend continued all the way to the end
of trading, with the local index soaring 193.26 points, or
4.57 percent, to close at 4,418.33.
Shares
also rallied on the Seoul stock exchange. The benchmark Kospi
index soared 76.92 points, or 7.5 percent, to close at 1,105.05.
The
main index of the technology-heavy Kosdaq market rose 14.55
points to 316.71.
In Thailand, shares jumped 4.5 percent in value on a combination
of good news on both the international and domestic fronts.
The
Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) index ended at 410.58, up
17.71 points, or 4.17 percent.
"Investors
came back to the market because of two bits of good news,"
said Mongkol Phuangphaetha, an analyst at Atkinson Securities.
"From
overseas there was the news that the US was going ahead with
a special budget for its ailing auto industry and domestically
there was the news that of the Democrats were poised to set
up a new government," he added.
Friday's
surge on Wall Street helped Australian stocks to a 4-percent
gain.
Buyers
beat sellers in a market that analysts say is oversold, with
the benchmark ASX 200 putting on 141 points, or 4 percent,
to 3,631.
Indo-Asian
News Service
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